Below are definitions and photographic illustrations of architectural term beginning with the letter "F".
| Facade - The front of a building. (Can also refer to any side of a building that faces a street.) A building's facade is usually taller and more ornate than the other sides. |
| Fanlight - A semi-circular window above a door or window. |
| Fascia Board - A wide vertical board used to cover the bottom ends of a roof's rafters. |
| Federal - An updated and more heavily ornamented version of the Georgian Colonial style, the Federal style was developed in the 18th century by the Adam brothers. The style was extremely popular in America between the late 1700s and the mid 1800s. Federal style buildings tend to be rectangular in shape with a low-pitched roof or a flat roof with balustrades, and make extensive use of oval and semicircular windows such as Palladian windows. Like the Georgian style, they have a symmetrical window layout and side chimneys. The front door is centered with a fanlight above it and is surrounded by sidelights. There's usually an ornamented pediment, entablature, or crown above the main entrance, and cornices exhibit dentil molding. Window shutters are common, as are arches and oval rooms in the interior. Swags, garlands, and urns tend to be the most common ornaments found on Federal style structures, but other embellishments are used on occasion. |
| Fenestration - The design and layout of a building's windows and doors. |
| Fieldstone - An unfinished stone, usually one found loose on the ground or near the surface. |
| Firebrick - A brick made from a special clay meant to withstand exposure to high temperatures. |
| Flame Finish - A textured stone finish obtained by superheating the face of the stone until small pieces chip off. (Some modern textbooks refer to this as a thermal finish.) |
| Flare Header - A brick with a darker end exposed as a header brick in a brickwork patten. |
| Flat Arch - An arch with a flat, horizontal intrados. The voussoirs are tilted at steeper angles the closer they are to the center of the arch, so they appear to point down to a focal point. This type of arch is usually built so it angles upwards slightly in the middle to allow for future settling. |
| Flat Roof - A roof that doesn't slope, or only has a very gradual slope to allow water to drain. |
| Flemish Bond - A brick pattern that alternates header bricks with stretcher bricks in each row. |
| Flemish Cross Bond - A modified form of flemish bond that alternates rows of stretchers with rows of alternating header and stretcher bricks. |
| Flemish Diagonal Bond - A modified flemish bond that offsets the rows of bricks so they form large diamond-shaped patterns. |
| Float Finish - A slightly textured concrete surface obtained by using a wooden float to smooth it. |
| Folly - A whimsical structure built to add interest to a view or to memorialize a person or an event. |
| Forecourt - A courtyard in front of the entrance to a building. |
| French Arch - A modified type of flat arch where the voussoirs on each side of the keystone are set at the same angle. |
| French Door - A door that consists primarily of rectangular glass panes. |
| Fresco - A picture painted on a moist plaster surface with a water-based paint. |
| Frieze - The flat section of an entablature between the cornice and architrave, usually decorated with carvings or low-relief sculptures. |
